Smith named in finalists for first time

Plenty of top talent has been recognised in the Otago Sports Awards.

The finalists have been named for the awards which will be revealed at a function on May 21.

There is stiff competition in many of the categories and will be tough to separate some top performers.

One surprising but well deserved finalist is All Black halfback Aaron Smith.

Smith has never been nominated for the award as he has links with Manawatu.

But having played for the Highlanders for a decade, becoming the side’s most capped player this year, it was felt he was worthy of a nomination.

The Highlanders won the overall award in 2016 after winning the title in 2015 and Smith is a key part of the team.

He will be joined in the senior men’s category by Coast to Coast winner Dougal Allan and Wanaka multisport athlete Braden Currie.

The junior sportswoman of the year category is one of high quality.

Skier Alice Robinson, snowboarder Zoi Sadowski-Synnott and swimmer Erika Fairweather are all world-class and will be hard to separate.

The coach of the year nominees are Otago Nuggets coach Brent Matehaere, rowing coach Simon Smith and snowboarding coach Sean Thompson.

The Nuggets have been nominated as the team of the year along with the Otago Gold Rush (the Otago women’s basketball team) and the Dunstan High School under-18 double sculls crew of Paige Furrie and Mackenzie Ealson.

The official of the year category features cricket umpire Chris Gaffaney, rugby referee James Doleman and Nuggets general manager Angela Ruske.

Biathlon competitor Campbell Wright, free-skier Nico Porteous and athlete Shay Veitch are nominated for the junior sportsman category.

Motocross world champion Courtney Duncan has been nominated in the senior sportswoman award along with Coast to Coast champion Simone Maier and professional cyclist Mikayla Harvey.

A services to sport award and innovation in sport award will also be handed out on the night.

Last year, the awards were announced in the Otago Daily Times in partnership with Sport Otago because of restrictions around crowds because of Covid-19.

But it is back to a formal dinner this year at the Edgar Centre.

The Edgar Centre is a new venue and will be a good tie-in with the awards as so much sport is played at the centre.

Sport Otago event and sport capability lead Michael Smith said the intention had always been to go ahead with the awards despite some sports not featuring much last year because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said plenty of Otago athletes competed right round the world last year and they deserved to be recognised.

The awards are judged by athletics coach Megan Gibbons, former Black Cap Craig Cumming, athletics coach Raylene Bates, Sport Otago chief executive John Brimble and Otago Daily Times sports editor Steve Hepburn.

The awards cover from April 1, 2020 to March 31 this year.